Breastfeeding twins has many advantages for both the mother and baby.

Breastfeeding strengthens the baby’s immune system and reduces the incidence of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). It is also a great way for mother and child to bond.

Breastfeeding twins can seem overwhelming to a new mom, but thousands of new mothers successfully breastfed their twins every day.

These tips will help you to be successful from day one.

1. Get a Lactation Consultant

As soon as you arrive in your Postpartum room after giving birth, ask to see the Lactation Consultant. As a mother of twins, you will be a priority for her.

She will sit with you and teach you exactly how to get each of your babies to latch correctly onto your breast. Learning how to do this from the very first feeding is important.

If your babies do not latch correctly, breastfeeding twins can be painful and your babies will not be able to feed efficiently.

That is the number one reason responsible for issues with breastfeeding twins.

Nowadays all Lactation Consultants receive training on teaching mothers how to breastfeed twins, so she will be able to help you with different positions and issues particular to twins.

2. Find a Lactation Consultant in Your Area

Before giving birth, you may want to find a lactation consultant in your area, so you can make an appointment to see her once you have been released from the hospital. Many will come out to your home to continue to help you after you leave the hospital.

3. Get in a Comfortable Breastfeeding Position.

The position is very important when breastfeeding twins. There are many positions mothers prefer when breastfeeding twins and there is no one right way.

The positions for breastfeeding twins should allow you to relax your back and neck. Your posture of choice should allow easy digestion while the babies suckle.

You may find a number of positions helpful at different times. The goal is to try different positions until you find the ones that work best for you and your twins.

4. Get a Comfortable Breastfeeding Pillow

Get a special breastfeeding pillow designed for twins.

The My Brest Friend Supportive Nursing Pillow For Twins 0-12 Months, Plus-Size is the most useful breastfeeding pillow for twins.

It is soft and provides plenty of room for both babies. The strap is also awesome, as it keeps the pillow in place while you move your twins around and help them latch on correctly.

Colors: Light Green (Pictured), Dark Grey, Light Grey, Fireworks, and Black and White

Lowest Price: Amazon.com

Price: $58.04- $67.99

5. Wear Easy Access Nursing Tops and Nursing Bras.

In the beginning, you will find soft, comfortable 2-in-1 nursing tops with built-in bras to be extremely useful. While you are learning how to nurse twins and your twins are feeding to often, you will find yourself constantly needing to expose your breast to feed. These tops also make it simple to breastfeed both twins at the same time.

Caramel Cantina 3 Pack Women’s Nursing Cami Built-in Bra is a great 2-in-1 soft tank top and nursing bra. You can wear it by itself or under another loose top. It comes in many sizes and colors, thus matching everything. You will want to buy at least a few packs of these because in the beginning, milk will leak and babies will spit up on you.

Colors: Black, White and Charcoal (3 Pack), Navy, Burgundy and Teal (3 Pack), Black (3 Pack)

Lowest Price: Amazon.com

Price: $36.99 (Pack of three)

Having plenty of comfortable nursing bras is also important. When your milk supply is first coming in and your twins are learning how to breastfeed, it will messy. You will find yourself often needing to change your bra. You will also need to wear a bra all the time in the beginning because your breasts will leak milk.

Therefore, you will want to have comfortable bras you can wear all day and night.

The 3 PACK Full Bust Seamless Nursing Maternity Bras with Extenders & Clips is the perfect nursing bra bundle.

We recommend you buy at least three of these packs to get started. The extender will be great right after you give birth before you lose your pregnancy and while your milk supply is adjusting. The clips allow you to connect the two straps in the back to hide them when wear tank tops or other sleeveless shirts.

Colors: Black, Pink & Nude (3 Pack), Nude (3 Pack), Black (3 Pack), Black, Grey & Nude (3 Pack)

Lowest Price: Amazon.com

Price: $36.99 (Pack of three)

6. Start with One Twin at a Time

As a new parent or one who is having your first pair of twins, it is advisable that you start gradually, with a twin at a time to the breast.

Once each twin is latching properly and you feel comfortable, start trying to feed the other twin at the same time.

Be patient with yourself and know you will master breastfeeding twins at the same time. It is a skill like any other and simply requires practice.

7. Use a Breastpump Only When Necessary

Before you consider using a breast pump, be sure it is needed.

Mothers panic, saying their breasts don’t produce much milk and they are afraid they are not making enough for the twins.

it takes a few days for your milk to come in. The most effective way to establish a strong milk supply is to latch them properly and encourage your twins to feed often.

The woman lactation process actually generates more milk with the demands placed by the suckling mouth(s). Breast pumps are just not as effective at expelling milk from the breast.

In the early days, encourage your twins to breastfeed often. These early days will determine how much milk your body makes. It is a supply and demand system established during the first days. That is also why learning how to latch your twins on is so important from the beginning.

So, before you go for a pumping aid, be sure you need it.

When it is time to begin pumping, we recommend you use the Medela Pump in Style Advanced Double Electric Breast Pump with On the Go Tote.

It is an awesome all-in-one system.

Medela is the most well-known and recommended brand on the market. All of their products come with a lifetime warranty and their service department is excellent.

While the bag this breast pump comes with may not be your first choice, this bundle is a great deal and has everything you will need to immediately begin pumping.

Lowest Price: Amazon.com

Price: $190.93

8. Alternate the kids to the breast

Each of the twins might have different appetite and sucking behavior.

Therefore, alternate which twin feeds from each breast with every feeding. A great way to remember which twin fed from each breast is to wear a simple bracelet or hair tie on your wrist. Assign the hair tie to Twin A. After you have completed breastfeeding your twins, move the hair tie to the other wrist. This will tell you that Twin A should feed on that breast during the next feeding.

9. Get Rest

You need as much rest as you can get.

When your newborn twins are sleeping, you should sleep, as well.

Ask friends and family members to keep up with the daily tasks around the house.

In the early days, your task is to heal your body from birth, breastfeed and care for your new twins. That is a full-time job. Everything else can wait.

10. Ask for Help

Neighbors, friends, co-workers, and family are great helpers in the early days. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Hiring a Postpartum Doula is also an excellent choice.

Postpartum Doulas can help you care for your newborn twins, clean your house, cook and help organize the help of others in your life.

11. Eat and Drink Frequently

Think of your body as just recovering from running a marathon.

Labor is exhausting and you have lost a lot of blood. Now you are trying to make food for two little people.

Allow yourself to eat foods you are craving. Your body may need more salt, protein or fats to recover.

In the early days, we drank lots of Ensure High Protein Nutrition Shake with 16 grams of high-quality protein, Meal Replacement Shakes.

We loved them because they did not contain milk and thus did not need to remain refrigerated. We kept them on our nightstand and drank them during the night when we woke up hungry.

Product Details:

Flavors: Chocolate, Strawberry, and Vanilla

Price: $31.94 for 24 8oz Bottles

Lowest Price: Amazon.com

Drinking lots of water is one of the best ways to ensure your body will produce enough milk.

Breast milk is composed of 90% water.

During birth and for days after giving birth, your body will lose a lot of blood. Blood is composed mostly of water. Therefore, you will likely be extremely dehydrated.

One of the biggest factors that will affect your milk supply in the early days is your water intake. This is a crucial time as your body is figuring out how much milk to make for your twins. If you are severely dehydrated in the early days, your body will not establish the correct amount of milk supply.

You will probably notice that soon after you begin breastfeeding your twins you will become thirsty. The oxytocin that your body releases during breastfeeding is responsible for triggering your thirst. This is your body’s natural way of ensuring that you are getting enough water to make breast milk.

As soon as you can, begin rehydrating your body. This can easily be done simply with water. During breastfeeding one baby, you should drink an extra quart, or 32 ounces, per day.

12. Start Preparing Before Your Twins Arrive.

Preparation is key. Create a plan now to ensure you will have all of the tools and people in place when your twins arrive.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help. People who love you will want to feel needed and your twins will benefit from it, as well.

The post 12 Tips for Breastfeeding Twins appeared first on TWINS Magazine.

When Kim brought her twin-toddlers to the pediatrician’s office, one child cried the whole time and the other kept asking for cookies.  By the time Dr. Carter entered the room, Kim was frazzled.  Her children’s distractions caused her to forget to ask a couple of important questions of the doctor.

This happens frequently.  Many parents are distracted during office visits and forget to mention important details of health or behavior to their doctors.  Perhaps this has happened to you.  Here are some ideas to help you office visits go more smoothly:

Bring your twins’ medical histories with you

For your first visit, bring a copy of your children’s medical records from your previous physician.  Your new doctor is interested in their medical histories, previous surgeries, diagnoses, and treatments.  Remember to bring immunization records.  Have all your records in a file folder for safekeeping, and let the office make copies, but keep the originals for your home records.

Bring your list of symptoms 

Before the appointment, make a written list of each child’s symptoms and any questions you may have for the doctor.  This helps you remember important information you may otherwise forget.  Symptoms are like pieces of a puzzle.  When you tell your doctor all of the details—even seemingly unimportant ones—it gives your physician a clearer picture of your situation.  It helps make an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan.

Talk to your doctor about medications

If your twins take any medications, vitamins or herbs, bring the bottles with you in separate zip-lock plastic bags, labeled with each child’s name.  Your doctor will easily see what they take, dosage and frequency.  By looking at your bags of medications, your doctor can prevent misunderstandings and mistakes.  It’s an important safeguard.

Your doctor may want to change a medication.  If the physician doesn’t explain why, ask about the reason(s).  Sometimes doctors are busy thinking and forget to clarify why they are making changes.  Ask about side effects or anything you should be watchful of with new medications.  Usually children won’t experience side effects, but if they do, you’ll know how to respond.

Everyone’s body responds a little differently to each medication.  If one of your twins is taking a new prescription and having a problem with it, call your doctor if you are concerned.  Some meds need close monitoring to make sure they are working properly.  If a med isn’t working well, your doctor may want to switch to another one, which your child may tolerate better.

Schedule appointments based on priority items

If you child has several medical problems, select the most important one or two that need addressing.  As mothers, we tend to try to solve everything in one visit.  But this can result in inadequate time for the most important health issues.  If there isn’t enough time to address your child’s problem thoroughly, a follow-up visit can be a good solution.  Your doctor can make sure your child is progressing well with the new treatment and you can talk about your other concerns.

Most pediatricians and family doctors schedule or allot 10-minutes per appointment, per child.  It’s important to respect their time constraints.  Doctors appreciate patients who focus on health issues and don’t draw them into conversations about unrelated topics. Most pediatric offices will allow you to schedule your twins’ appointments together.

Out of respect for your doctor, don’t ask for a medical opinion related to another child’s health if you don’t have an appointment for that child.  If your other child also is sick, it’s best to schedule a separate appointment.  This enables the staff to prepare each child’s medical chart for the office visit and avoids confusion for the doctor.

Appointments are easy to forget, especially well-child check-ups.  The children are feeling fine and moms forget the visit because doctor appointments aren’t part of the normal routine.  If you think you may forget, post a reminder note on the refrigerator the day before the appointment.

Doctors not only appreciate when parents remember appointments, but also when they arrive a few minutes early.  Latecomers set the doctor’s schedule back, sometimes for the entire day.  If every person arrives early and uses the proper time allotment, everyone’s waiting-room time is relatively short.

Develop a treatment plan with your doctor

Your doctor wants you to understand the treatment plan set up for your child(ren).  If you don’t understand something, ask your physician to go over it again and explain in detail what each step is for and how to carry out.  No question should be overlooked if it is important to you.  During your visit, if possible, write down important details that could easily be confused or forgotten.

Share your concerns

Don’t be afraid to talk to your doctor about personal issues or uncomfortable topics pertaining to your twins.  Your doctor treats all types of problems regularly and can help you.  But your physician is not a mind-reader and can visually recognize only some aspects of your children’s health, so you have to introduce the topics your physician needs to know about.

Tests, procedures and specialists

Your doctor may want to order medical tests or send your child to a specialist for problems that need great attention. Certain screenings and lab work help your doctor thoroughly understand the roots or manifestations of certain conditions.  Provide the nurse with the dates you are available for appointments or tests.  This saves time and enables your nurse to schedule things more quickly for you.

A quality physician only orders test when they are necessary tests.  Today things are different.  Insurance companies oversee testing payments and won’t allow unnecessary tests to be done.  You can rest assured that your doctor will only order tests that are important.

Payment plans

Bring your co-pay, insurance cards, credit card or cash.  Your driver’s license or identification is required for the first appointment, in order for your children to be seen.  If you are having financial problems, many offices will allow you to use a payment plan.  Like any other service providers, doctors expect and appreciate timely payment.

Know your doctor and the staff

Even as your doctor finds it important to know certain things about your family, there are things you may want to know about your doctor.  It’s time to ask how long your pediatrician or family practice doctor has been in practice and where he or she attended medical school.  The physician and the office staff should be friendly and polite.  They should return your phone calls in a timely fashion.  It’s important that their office be clean and well-organized.

Work together for good health

It takes extra preparation to make smooth office visits.  Be especially alert when procedures or immunizations are being given to your twins—you’re an important element of safeguarding them from medical mistakes.  If the room is noisy or chaotic, it’s possible the nurse could become distracted and administer a shot to the wrong child.  With your watchful eye, mistakes can be prevented.

Your doctor and the office staff care about your family’s health and will give you wise counsel, to the very best of their ability.  Have reasonable expectations for relief of symptoms and cures.  Not everything can be “fixed” instantly and medicine is as much art as science.

Judy Gyde lives in Toledo, Ohio and is a former pediatric nurse who has twin nieces and a son-in-law with a twin sister. The pediatrician she worked for had about five sets of twins per month who visited the practice for routine checkups.

The post Make the Most of Your Twins’ Pediatric Appointments appeared first on TWINS Magazine.

In this guide, we offer a plan for finding a great pediatrician and some important questions to ask. 

Step 1: Start your list 

The first step is to start compiling a list of potential providers for your babies. This can be done by asking other moms, looking at online resources and talking to your OB/GYN. Once you have a list of potential doctors you can move on to the next step. 

Step 2: Do your homework 

Once you have your list of names its time to start doing a little digging. In this step you will use a few resources and do a little looking into each potential doctor. With websites like Health Grades and Vitals.com you can do everything from check where a doctor earned their medical degree to read extensive patient reviews. 

Another important part of this step is to talk to moms in your area. While you might have asked them for names in step 1, asking about doctors reputations is an important part of step 2. Perhaps the doctors online reviews are good but several moms note how hard it is to make an appointment. This is very important information. 

Step 3: Schedule a time to meet the doctors 

Many moms-to-be skip this important step, but it should not be overlooked. Most pediatricians are happy to meet with expectant moms for an “interview.” They will only be able to offer a few minutes out of their busy schedule but these doctors know that having a rapport with new parents is important. Once you have your short list of names, give the office a call and ask about scheduling a brief time to meet the doctor. 

Step 4: Ask questions 

When you meet with your babies potential doctor, there are a number of important questions to ask. Some lists will suggest asking things like any sub=specialties, office hours, other doctors in the practice and logistical questions. These are things you can find out in step 2 and can save some time to ask the important questions. The best kinds of questions to ask are things like:

• What is the philosophy of your practice?
• What tests are handled in the office? 
• Do you respond to questions through e-mail? 
• Do you offer same-day sick visits? 
• What is your schedule for baby well visits? 
• How do you treat twins differently than singletons? 

Step 5: Making your decision

In the end, you will probably have a good sense of who the right fit is for your family and your babies. In the early weeks and months, you will work very closely with your pediatrician so having a good rapport is key. 

Follow these important steps and you will be on your way to finding the perfect provider for your babies. 

The post 5 Steps to Find the Perfect Pediatrician for Your Twins appeared first on TWINS Magazine.